RiverBank, which opened here four years ago, posted much higher second-quarter net income of $562,000, up from $58,000 in the year-earlier quarter, regulatory documents show.

The privately held institution ended the second quarter with total loans of $122.2 million, up 2.5 percent from a year earlier, but down from $126.6 million at the end of 2009. Similarly, its deposits at the end of the latest quarter were $131.6 million, up 2 percent from a year earlier, but down from $139.2 million at the end of last year, the data show.

Duane Brandenburg, the bank's president and CEO, says, though, that more importantly, its core deposits are up about $17 million from a year ago, thanks to reduced reliance on brokered deposits.

RiverBank's total assets at the end of the latest quarter were $146.1 million, up 3 percent from a year earlier.

"Business activity is slow right now, so the demand for credit is not as strong as it has been in the last couple of years," Brandenburg says. Also, he says, the bank—like many institutions—has been going through a transition that has it more focused now on owner-occupied real estate project lending and commercial and industrial lending.

Looking ahead, he says, "I think we've got another 12 to 18 months before we see activity really begin to pick up." Despite his cautious view of the overall lending market, he says, "Our business model is working well," and the bank's concierge services—in which bank representatives go to customers' locations—continue to be quite popular.

RiverBank notched its first profitable calendar year in 2009, reporting earnings of $592,000 despite the steep downturn of financial markets nationally, and Brandenburg said earlier this year that he was mostly upbeat about 2010, though tough economic challenges remain.

RiverBank is a niche bank that offers services, mostly to small-business and commercial clients in the Spokane area. It's sole branch is at 203 E. Spokane Falls Boulevard, but also has a building just west of there where it has some computer operations and keeps concierge courier vehicles.